Ancient Wizards: A Little Progress Every Day

The hands hidden beneath the green robes finally emerged, pale to the point of being almost transparent, yet with distinct knuckles, exuding a chilling dexterity.

Yadar's ten fingers danced rapidly in the void, without actually touching anything, yet it was as if he were playing an invisible organ. Between the leaps of his fingertips, he played a death symphony called "Growth".

With each tremor of his fingers, large amounts of golden powder fell from between his fingers.

It was no ordinary dust; each grain of powder shimmered with a faint glow in the air, breathing as if it were alive.

An invisible wind arose out of nowhere, like the most attentive servant, swirling up these golden "seeds" and quickly scattering them, evenly covering every inch of space in front of Dago.

At that very moment, an intense, almost suffocating scent of lilacs, like a tangible tide, crashed into Dago's nostrils.

The taste wasn't sweet; instead, it had a cloying sweetness from decay, like a withered flower mound piled up over countless days and months, suddenly uncovered at this moment.

Dago suddenly realized that the faint smell he had smelled earlier was just the prelude to this terrifying aura. The real source was the seemingly harmless, baby-faced young man in front of him.

Dago's face was expressionless, but his eyes were as calm as a deep pool.

He didn't waste any words, not even a moment's rest, he simply raised his hand and pointed.

That one finger seemed to have turned on the switch for winter.

What was originally a cool night breeze instantly turned into a biting cold current.

Countless icy particles gathered frantically at his fingertips, and a creaking sound came from the air as the moisture was instantly frozen.

A huge vortex of ice and snow took shape at his fingertips. The inside of the vortex was not hollow, but contained thousands of thin, yet sharp, ice shards.

They spun rapidly in the vortex, cutting into each other and making a teeth-grinding friction sound, as if trying to tear this void apart.

Second-tier spell – Blizzard.

The name sounds rather mild, but with the terrifying amplification from the [Eternal Night Frost Mark] set, this spell has completely shed its original naivety.

It was more than ten times larger than the original, its diameter expanding to a terrifying degree. The swirling blizzard roared like an ancient ice beast awakened.

It left a long, unhealable white trail in the air, and with an aura of annihilation, it rapidly crushed towards Yadar.

Faced with this overwhelming chill, Yadar's reaction was so calm that it was infuriating.

He simply raised his long, slender index finger and touched the space between his eyebrows.

"Pop".

A soft sound, like the sound of a flower blooming.

A green rune shaped like a flower bud suddenly lit up between his eyebrows, followed by countless green dots of light appearing behind him.

Those points of light were not dazzling, but they were full of vitality. They rapidly gathered, wove, and grew, and in an instant, they condensed into a huge, swaying, and blooming strange flower.

The flower was half real and half ethereal, its petals exhibiting an eerie translucency, with golden halos flowing through its veins.

Faced with the menacing vortex of ice and snow, the magical flower simply made one move—closing itself.

The enormous petals closed gently, like a mother embracing her child returning home, or like a Venus flytrap catching an insect caught in its net.

It gently, yet undeniably, kept the icy vortex released by Dago three feet away from Damian's body.

Immediately afterwards, the flower trembled slightly.

"boom--!"

The once invincible vortex of ice and snow, capable of crushing steel, collapsed instantly with this tremor!

There was no violent explosion, no sky ablaze with fire, only a dull shattering sound.

The icy vortex seemed to have crashed into a wall of sighs, instantly disintegrating into a sky full of powerless snowflakes and cold winds that swept back.

"call--"

The swirling snow, carrying a biting chill, gently brushed against Dago's face, lifting the hair on his forehead.

Dago narrowed his eyes slightly, a faint glint of light flashing deep in his pupils.

Only at this moment did the cold reality known as "hierarchical suppression" truly confront him.

While watching Gattuso and Barker's fight from the audience, I could see the power of the third-ring wizard.

But that feeling is like looking at a caged tiger through a thick pane of glass; you know it's fierce, but you lack the direct sense of fear.

At that time, I only felt that they were more powerful than ordinary second-ring wizards, with more diverse methods and deeper magic.

But now, when he actually stands in this position, facing a seasoned level three wizard...

Dago truly realized that this was not just "a little stronger," but a qualitative difference!

Even though she was wearing the priceless [Eternal Night Frost Mark] set, even though she had mental strength far exceeding that of others of the same level, and even though she had mastered a second-tier spell and amplified its power tenfold, in the eyes of her opponent, she was still as fragile as a toy in a child's hand.

The opponent didn't even need to chant or cast a spell; a simple third-tier defensive spell was enough to create an unbreakable wall of steel, easily neutralizing my most powerful attack.

This is the foundation, the accumulation of time, the chasm of life levels.

Dago took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the slight ripple in his heart.

He stopped making those pointless tests, which were just a waste of his precious magic.

His expression turned serious, he raised his right hand high, and then suddenly pressed down with one hand, making a motion as if drawing a sword in mid-air.

"Buzz—"

In an instant, the entire arena seemed to tremble.

Countless dense, mysterious energies flowed out from between his outstretched fingers like a burst dam.

These energies are cold, sharp, and carry an ancient and weathered feel; they intertwine and outline in the void.

Beneath the enormous arena, frost began to form on the ground, and a huge, mysterious pattern resembling a six-pointed star of frost slowly emerged.

Immediately afterwards, a huge energy vortex was generated in the center of the six-pointed star, spinning wildly as if summoning some extremely cold thing from the abyss.

"Click—click—"

Amidst the chilling sound of freezing, a massive, pure white ice blade, a full twenty meters long, slowly rose from the center of the vortex.

The ice blade was pure white, without a single impurity, as if it were formed from the purest ice in the world.

It is not just a piece of ice, but more like a forbidden weapon that has been sealed since ancient times. Now that it has been broken free, it carries an unparalleled sharpness that can freeze souls and cleave everything!

"A single layer of magical resonance, [Fine Snow Sword Domain - Extremely Frozen Peerless Weapon]!"

Dago's voice was deep and hoarse, as if it came from the deepest part of an ancient ice cave, carrying a chill that eroded the soul, echoing in the ears of every audience member.

This is no longer an ordinary spell, but the power of the "magic domain" that has touched the edge of the rules!

After the abnormal boost from the [Eternal Night Frost Mark] set, it has become more than ten times stronger!

At this moment, what hovers in front of Dago is no longer an ice sword, but a giant ice peak weapon capable of cleaving mountains!

A terrifying giant ice sword hovered in front of Dago, its chilling aura causing the surrounding air to condense into tiny ice crystals.

Dago seemed to be gripping a sword hilt that didn't exist, his eyes fixed on Yadar opposite him, and then, slowly and heavily, he made a slashing motion.

"call--"

A giant ice sword swept across the void.

This sword strike seemed to freeze even space itself.

An endless icy wind was whipped up, transforming into a visible white wave of air. Where the ice sword slashed, a huge and clear black gash was left in the air, a mark of space being forcibly torn apart by the extreme low temperature and sharpness.

A howling wind whipped Yadar's long green robe, which had remained perfectly still, into the wind, causing it to flutter loudly.

Only now did this "senior," who had maintained a faint smile, finally show a flicker of emotion in his eyes.

But it was only a tiny bit.

He looked at the twenty-meter-long giant sword that was slashing down on him, without panicking, without dodging, and without even fading the smile on his lips.

"That's interesting..."

He spoke softly, his voice carrying a detached indifference that suggested he had seen through the ways of the world.

"【The Silk of the Thorn】!"

Yadar suddenly spread his arms wide to the sides, and intricate and eerie runes suddenly shone brightly in his palms.

The light was no longer a vibrant emerald green, but a golden yellow with an eerie quality.

In an instant, the endless energy particles in the air surged wildly as if they had received a royal decree.

The golden powder that he had previously scattered around like seeds now seemed to be infused with demonic life force, growing and expanding wildly, one by one.

"Puff puff puff—"

That was the sound of plants breaking through the soil, the sound of life growing wildly.

In less than half a breath, the powder grew into huge, full, golden flowers with pale white petals.

They are not beautiful; instead, they exude a creepy and grotesque quality.

These flowers were densely packed, crowding the entire arena from top to bottom and left to right, even filling the empty space at Dago's feet.

The cloyingly sweet scent of lilacs in the air was so intense at that moment that it almost made someone faint on the spot.

Those densely packed, mysterious white flowers opened their stamens at the same time.

"Hiss hiss hiss—"

Countless golden stamens burst forth from the flower's pistil. They resembled greedy golden venomous snakes rather than plants, or countless living tentacles, shooting into the sky like living creatures.

In an instant, these seemingly delicate threads wrapped around the giant, pure white ice sword that had been slashed down.

The extreme icy chill surrounding the ice sword seemed to have no effect on these strange, ethereal threads.

Although that terrifying sharpness could cut and sever the filaments the moment they came into contact, there were simply too many filaments to handle!

If one branch breaks off, two more will grow; if one layer breaks off, ten more will cover it!

The golden threads flowed endlessly, one after another, like an inexhaustible golden ocean, threatening to completely engulf this cold behemoth.

In less than a breath's time, Dago's imposing giant ice sword was caught in a desperate blockage.

It remains sharp and cold, but it is like a giant stuck in the mud, where every step forward requires a huge price.

Even the layer of magical resonance power attached to the ice sword seemed to be gradually worn away and scattered by those seemingly weak but actually tough and terrifying threads.

"Is this what they call a 'genius'? The strength is good, but it's too straightforward."

Yadar calmly walked towards Dago step by step, the golden flowers under his feet automatically parting to make way for him.

He looked at the trapped ice sword, seemingly unsurprised by the outcome.

He was like a gardener pruning branches in his own garden, casually raising one hand and pointing at D'Ago.

"go."

With his finger, more filaments grew from the surrounding flowers.

This time, instead of mainly entwining, some of the filaments were stretched straight, their tips gleaming with a metallic glint, piercing the air and shooting towards Dago.

They were as fast as countless sharp golden arrows!

"Whoosh whoosh-"

The sound of something cutting through the air was sharp and piercing.

Dago's expression changed slightly, and he retreated rapidly under the attack of countless golden threads.

He shifted his body in the air, leaving afterimages as he tried to evade these relentless attacks.

But these filaments seemed to have eyes, relentlessly pursuing her like a persistent, invasive disease.

Suddenly, a thread moved extremely fast and at a tricky angle. Dago couldn't dodge in time and could only barely turn to the side.

"puff!"

The filigree pierced Dago's left shoulder.

Dago's pupils suddenly contracted. He looked down and saw that the spot where the silk thread had pierced the incredibly hard ice crystal shoulder armor of the [Eternal Night Frost Mark] set had actually been pierced with a small hole!

Immediately afterwards, large cracks spread rapidly from the small hole, even the defensive runes at the core of the shoulder armor were shaken, and their luster dimmed instantly.

"Is this the Third Ring Road?"

"Just a seemingly insignificant thread can damage [Eternal Night Frost Mark], which has never been breached at the second-ring level?!"

Dago's mind raced with thoughts, and a strong sense of crisis surged into his heart.

He finally understood what kind of monster he was facing.

The opponent's spells were not only powerful, but their precise control and ability to manipulate the properties of spells were beyond the comprehension of a second-ring wizard.

We have to fight! If we hold back any longer, we might not even have a chance to fight back!

Dago took a deep breath, his eyes becoming resolute and crazed.

next moment.

"boom!"

An even more violent and colder aura erupted from his body.

A massive, deep blue ice sphere, imbued with an aura of utter despair, coalesced and took shape to his left, like a lifeless star.

At the same time, countless aurora-like deep blue beams of light, like cage bars, suddenly burst forth from his right side.

"First-level resonance of magical domains, [Activate Ice Crystal Technique - Ice Core Cruise Missile!]"

"First-level resonance of the magical domain, [Elemental Resonance Spell - Iceberg Resonance!]"

Two immense and suffocating auras of the Dharma Domain burst forth from his body, forcefully pushing away the golden threads that were about to approach him like venomous snakes.

At this moment, the energy of the three Dharma Domains around Dago fluctuated and intertwined, and each of them reached the realm of resonance of the first Dharma Domain!

The temperature in the entire arena dropped to freezing point, as if the air itself had been frozen.

The wizards who had been marveling at Yadar's power in the surrounding stands now looked like ducks with their necks being choked.

There was a moment of silence, followed by an incredible commotion.

"This...this is three different legal domains?!"

"How could a second-circle wizard possibly master and resonate with three different magical domains simultaneously?!"

"Is this kid... some kind of monster?"

Dago couldn't hear the murmurs from the sidelines; at that moment, all he could see was his formidable opponent, who was still smiling and slowly approaching.

The battle has only just begun!